ROLLING ALONG: Coming into the final homestand of the regular season, Seattle University has won seven of its last ten games to once again reach the .500 mark. The Redhawks have not been above .500 since defeating UC irvine on Dec. 15 to improve to 6-5. They have the chance to clinch a winning season with two victories in the final three regular season games, beginning Saturday night against Cal State Bakersfield, a team in the final year of the reclassification process towards full Division I membership. Postseason play, especially in the CBI or the CIT, is still a possibility for SeattleU, but the team needs to protect its home court in order for that to happen.

THE SAN JOSE STATE GAME: Senior guard Taylor Olson hit a three-pointer from the right corner with 5.4 seconds left in the second half to give Seattle University a 90-88 victory over San Jose State Monday night at the Event Center. The final two minutes were a seesaw battle, starting with a free throw by Charles Garcia with 1:45 left to give SeattleU an 85-84 lead. Adrian Oliver made two free throws to give the Spartans a one-point advantage, followed by empty possessions for each team. Alex Jones stole the ball with 30.7 seconds left to give SeattleU a chance at retaking the lead. Jones hit a jumper with 15 seconds left to put the Redhawks on top, 87-86, but Mac Peterson drew a foul and made both free throws to allow the Spartans to go back on top, 88-87, with 10 seconds left. During Peterson’s free throws, San Jose State called timeout to set its defense, but it also allowed SeattleU to draw up the play, and Olson found himself wide open in the corner for the winning shot. The Spartans put the ball in Oliver’s hands for one final attempt, but the Redhawk defense swarmed him, and Olson was credited with the steal that sealed the victory. Garcia scored 17 of his team-high 20 points in the second half, plus he pulled down five rebounds and dished out four assists. Jones finished with 17 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field to go along with three rebounds and three steals, and Cervante Burrell contributed 14 points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Aaron Broussard earned nine points, three rebounds, and five steals, Olson had a perfect shooting night in compiling eight points, as did Peter Harris in contributing seven points, three rebounds, and two assists.

JEFF SAGARIN SAYS: The Sagarin ratings is one of the most popular tools for comparing two teams and attempting to predict the result. As of Feb. 26, Seattle University is 182nd with a rating of 70.88 and Cal State Bakersfield is 288th with a rating of 62.60. Taking into account a 3.82 home advantage, the Sagarin ratings would say that Seattle University is favored to win today’s game by about 12 points.

KEEPING UP WITH ALEX JONES: After a slow start, junior college transfer Alex Jones has been a major factor in the post for Seattle University. Starting with a 16-point performance against UC Irvine on Dec. 15, Jones has scored in double figures nine times, highlighted by a 19-point performance on Feb. 13 against Sacramento State and a 24-point effort on Feb. 16 against UC Davis. In that span of 18 games, the Phoenix native is averaging 11.2 points and 3.9 rebounds per game, shooting 52.4 percent from the field, including 12-of-31 from behind the three-point line, and 70.9 percent from the free throw line.

SCOUTING CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD: The Roadrunners come into Saturday’s game with a 7-20 record with two games remaining in their final year of reclassification before becoming a full Division I school. Cal State Bakersfield is 5-6 at home and 2-14 on the road. The Roadrunners are scoring 65.8 points per game and giving up 74.4 points per contest. As a team, Cal State Bakersfield is shooting 38.7 percent from the field, including 30.9 percent from the three-point line, and 68.8 percent from the free throw line. Trent Blakley leads the team in scoring with 15.0 points per game. Stephon Carter is contributing 12.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.7 steals per game, while Santwon Latunde has 11.1 points and a team-high 8.1 rebounds per game.

SERIES HISTORY: This will be the sixth meeting overall between Seattle University and Cal State Bakersfield, with the Roadrunners holding a 3-2 series advantage. These two teams first met during the 1981-82 season at a tournament hosted by Oregon Tech, with Cal State Bakersfield winning, 47-41. Cal State Bakersfield also won a home game during the 1994-95 season, 82-63, as well as a contest during the 2001-02 campaign at a tournament hosted by Western Oregon, 70-51. Seattle University has won the last two meetings, beginning with a 94-83 victory on Dec. 17, 2005, in Bakersfield. In that game five players scored in double figures for Seattle University, led by Bernard Seals with 28 points. On Feb. 16, 2009, SeattleU earned a 78-54 victory over the Roadrunners in Bakersfield. This will be the first meeting between the two teams in Seattle.

LAST MEETING: Seattle University scored the first basket and never gave up the lead, earning its ninth straight victory with a 78-54 win over Cal State Bakersfield last season at Rabobank Arena. Four players scored in double figures, led by Austen Powers with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting from the free throw line. Michael Wright notched his fifth double-double during the current winning streak, hitting 8-of-11 shots from the field for 16 points, plus he pulled down 12 rebounds. Mike Boxley contributed 13 points and five rebounds, while Aaron Broussard came off the bench and added 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field. As a team, Seattle University shot 52.7 percent from the field (29-of-55) and won the rebounding battle, 35-31. SeattleU jumped out to an 11-2 lead in the first four minutes, and then went on a 17-2 run midway through the first half to extend the advantage to 30-10. Cal State Bakersfield was never in the game after that, shooting only 38.2 percent from the field, including 3-of-19 from behind the three-point line, and committing 16 turnovers.

HOOPS FOR HAITI: Seattle University’s Office of Mission and Ministry is sponsoring a discounted ticket program which will benefit those affected by the earthquake in Haiti in January. Fans can download vouchers and exchange them, along with $10, for tickets to Saturday’s game against Cal State Bakersfield. All of the revenue from this program will go to Catholic Relief Services for their rebuilding efforts in Haiti. To download the vouchers fans can go to: http://www.seattleu.edu/uploadedFiles/Commons/Blog/Haiti/SUHoopsforHaiti.pdf.

CARDIAC HAWKS: Seattle University has won eight games this season by five points or less:

1) Nov. 19 vs. Fresno State – Cervante Burrell layup with eight seconds left in home opener for 85-84 win

8) Feb. 22 at San Jose State – Three-pointer from Taylor Olson with 5.4 seconds left for 90-88 win

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: As part of the reclassification process, Seattle University is not eligible to officially win any statistical awards. However, if SeattleU was eligible, Charles Garcia would be 34th in scoring at 19.4 points per game. As a team, Seattle University would be 11th in scoring offense and 19th in rebounding, averaging 80.2 points and 39.7 rebounds per game.

RECEIVING CHARITY: Charles Garcia has been prolific in getting to the free throw line so far this season, averaging 10.25 free throw attempts per game. Garcia has attempted a Division I-high 287 free throws, 30 more than Marqus Blakely of Vermont. Garcia has been a major reason why Seattle University is fifth in Division I in attempted free throws with 786.

LIVE FROM KEYARENA …: It will be Saturday Night Live at KeyArena, as tonight’s game will be streamed on GoSeattleU.com free of charge. The video stream will be delivered in partnership with AEG and 710 ESPN Seattle. The stream will be simulcast with the official on-air radio broadcast with Dave Grosby and Gary Hill, Jr., live from KeyArena at Seattle Center. The live video stream is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. PST. To access the video stream, fans can go to www.GoSeattleU.com and click on the SU Zone graphic, which will open the media player. The game will be the first one listed under Live Events.